The Truth of Heroes
by Silent Beginnings
Summary: Central City loves its speedsters but does it really know them? Every good hero has a secret identity but how long can one last when the public is being made aware of their hero's pasts? Can they ever look at them the same again?
1. Chapter 1

AN I've had this idea for a while now but I'm not sure about this type of story if anyone has any constructive criticism on how to write these characters I would really appreciate it. But I'll do my best folks. Enjoy!

Central City loved its speedsters there was no doubt of that. Almost every citizen of the city could sing the praises of the local heroes to an out of towner for hours. Even the rogues like Captain Cold or Mirror Master held a certain respect for the Scarlet Speedster and his partner. In Gotham even where Batman and Robin commanded their own form of reverence it wasn't quite the same as the people of Central City.

Largely life was alright for the two town heroes out of costume. Wally had a team of friends he could count on, the best friend a guy could ever ask for, an amazingly supportive family in Barry and Iris, and an awesome superhero career helping the Flash put away bad guys. Even school seemed to be going better for him ,life was finally looking up.

Sadly though all good things must come to an end and Wally's wake up call would be soon…. Speeding through the streets of Central City, Wally raced to keep up with his Uncle, the Flash. " Come on Kid ,we gotta hurry home or Iris will have both our backsides!" his Uncle shouted over the wind, simultaneously speeding up. " Alright Uncle Barry just wait a second!" Kid Flash shouted back. Wally paused for just a moment to adjust his sliding goggles.

When oddly instead of stopping to wait for his young partner the Flash continued running ahead as if he hadn't heard him at all. In fact if anything the red blur seemed to be moving faster than before. "Hey Uncle Barry! Wait up!" Wally shouted beginning to sprint after his mentor. But the reddish, blurry, form of the Flash kept moving and going until it was no longer anywhere in view.

Wally ,now thoroughly confused, turned to attempt to race in the general direction Barry had taken when suddenly a sharp pain was felt at the base of his neck and before he even had time to yell he had blacked out.

Wally awoke the next morning in his own bed in his room not in an alley as he had expected. Although he figured it must have been a dream.. albeit a very vivid one he couldn't seem to get over how real the pain on his neck had felt. But clearly it had been a dream hadn't it? The Flash would never leave his partner and nephew behind under any circumstance so it must have been. Still somewhat uneasy though he wasn't sure exactly why he began to prepare for the day.

Even as a speedster when everything seemed slow the day seemed to drag on. Wally found himself shifting in his chair impatiently for what he felt half the period only to glance down at his watch to realize barely three minutes had passed. The time to lunch , his favorite time of the day, seemed to go on forever.

The class work which he was usually excited to learn and understand seemed boring and unappealing today. His mind kept drifting back to the disturbing realistic "dream" from the night before it really had felt so real…

The school day ended without aplomb or even any appeal just the dull ending to a dull day. Another unrecognizable day in a sea of a million others. By the time Wally got home he felt oddly tired. Usually by this point he would be begging his Uncle to go on patrol early or attending some sort of team function but not today.

Wally decided that if nothing interesting was going to happen while he was awake and he was this tired perhaps he should take a nap. Just a quick one until Uncle Barry and Iris got home of course. But as soon as he walked into his bedroom, let alone lied down, for the second time in less than 48 hours Wallace Rudolph West was knocked out.

The sewers below Central City…

" Good it's going according to plan. Kid Flash and Flash will never know what hit them. By the time I'm done? Central City will never look at their heroes the same way again."

AN (2) How was that? Hopefully better than my interpretation of Wally.. Sorry if you don't like it I did my best. Reviews appreciated but flames will be used to melt captain Cold's sense of humor.


	2. Chapter 2

AN Thanks everyone for the very positive reaction to this story! And obviously you don't want to "hear" me babble so on to the story. (: I will not own this here. I will not own this there. I will not own this on a boat or with a goat..

Barry loved his city he really did but there were times where even his good will ran out. "Hey Flash! Where's your little sidekick? Squirt go running home to mommy today?" one of the rogues taunted him. Barry had to admit that was a good point. Where was Wally? He should have gotten out of school by now...

A loud scream pierced his thoughts breaking his concentration. He raced toward the sound trying to find the source, the rogues games could wait . When in a garbage strewn back alley he saw a large figure leaning menachingly over a much smaller figure.

Without thinking twice Barry dove between them trying to push the smaller figure behind himself to protect and simultaneously push the taller person away. When as soon as he did this he felt something cold and sharp.. insert itself into his neck. And unknowingly just like his nephew less than 10 miles away ..he slipped into blackness.

1 week later...

By this time the two speedsters disappearance had become nation wide news. Though Central City may not seem like it when their heroes don't show up they worry and worried people tell other people so very quickly coast to coast people everywhere knew that Flash and Kid Flash were missing and had not been sighted for almost eight days.

In all the confusion it is only natural to assume that the just as sudden disappearance of a local high school student and a forensic scientist would be put on the back burner. The rogues being the last ones to see Flash before his disappearance were brought in and questioned reapetedly but every single time they maintained that they knew nothing about the duo's vanishing act.

The city found itself in a state of panic and nothing much better was happening at the Watchtower...

Watchtower the same day..

"Did he say they were going on vacation, taking a break, anything?" Diana asked for the third time. " No neither of them did. At least not to me anyway." Clark responded for the third time himself. The rest of the team were in a meeting discussing what to do about the disappearance as well but Clark and Diana had been kicked out for being too emotional.

Well.. Diana did anyway Clark left to comfort her not because he missed them even more than she did. The same process was taking place at the Young Justice headquarters with equal levels of worry.

That night, all at once every television in Central City grew dark and the lights dimmed an otherworldly glow seemed to shine on the screens for a moment before they flicked back on... to a disturbing picture. Their own heroes tied up and both clearly drugged on-screen.

A deep, raspy voice began droning in the background " Greetings, residents of Central City as you can see here ...are the people you have entrusted your lives with your children's lives with brought down like mere animals. (Hint!)" " Everyday you look to these masked menaces to bring light to the dark and for them to protect you."

" The fact of the matter is Ladies and Gentlemen that you don't know them at all." "But, why don't we change that?" The screen zeroes in on a machine with probes attached to either side just the right size for a human head. " Let the head-games begin shall we?"

AN (2): I know cliff hangers are a bad habit but hey can't win 'em all. Did you catch the hint? Granted, I did point it out though. The hint is towards the.. yes an actual villan.. of Flash's who is behind this whole "mind game" setup. I challenge you to figure it out good luck!


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Hi everyone! Don't worry I didn't fall in a hole and break my neck or fall down the stairs and wind up in a cast. ( Though I bet some of you wished it because of the short and infrequent updates.. Be honest! (: ) Really guys sorry about that I'll try to update more often. On to the story! * walks in wrong direction and turns* This way to the story!

In response to a comment I noticed: Diana always seemed to me like she had a soft spot for the flashes and that scene was an excuse for me to squeeze in Superman/ Clark's reaction. Sorry if it seemed too AU though.

Iris West-Allen had seen some pretty crazy things. Things that would have any lesser woman running for the hills. But when your husband and your nephew are superheroes you kind of learn to roll with the punches. But seeing her aforementioned family kidnapped was just a little too much before the broadcast continued she fainted.

Artemis had never thought much about Wally's welfare the smiling speedster always seemed to be in control of any of his problems..aside from getting kidnapped that is. She was currently sitting through a meeting on what they would do about the Flash and Wally's kidnapping. As much as they fought Baywatch was a member of her new family and she would make sure no one hurt those close to her again.

Just then a broadcast flickered on the screen. As the kidnapping had made national news people from Gotham to Smallville were glued to their tv's hoping the best for their protectors. A memory cut in…

4 years before..

A red haired boy sat buried up to his nose in a chemistry book in the back of the classroom, as soon as the bell rang he ran as fast as he could for the exit. ( keep in mind this is before his powers). But the poor boy's exit was blocked by a hulking figure Mitchell Davis Wally's personal bully.. " Hey West! Where do you think your going? We haven't had our daily " chat" yet have we?"

Wally gulped their " chats" usually included him being punched. Mitchell grabbed the back of his jacket and began to haul him toward the bathroom. Wally began to protest and embarrassingly enough beg. " Look my Uncle will be here to pick me up soon could you please not do this today? I'll do your homework for the next week.."

But the bully didn't seem to hear him. Just as he was about to drag Wally completely out of sight a body blocked the entrance to the bathroom. " Just what are you doing to my nephew? Let go of him right now!" Barry's angry voice demanded. Mitch quickly let go and Barry, after making sure that Wally was alright, marched him to the principal.

" This boy was bullying my nephew. I'd like to know what kind of school you're running where this kind of thing happens." a furious Barry chewed the principal out. Needless to say the punk never touched Wally again.

Back in Present Day..

" That was Wally? He was so small! Why didn't he just fight back?" Artemis asked the team. " That was probably before he got his speed. He received it at 12 correct?" Kaldur responded. " guys I hate to interrupt the reminiscing but we've still got two speedsters to find." Robin cut in.

" Ok but where do we start looking?" Super boy asked. As he said that a loud beeping noise was heard from the kitchen M'gann's cooking… Some things never change.

At the Watchtower

" I've found some evidence. Some but not much. Whoever's behind this put a lot of thought into it." Batman said curtly. " It looks like they were both taken at around the same time. It also looks like they were drugged but it doesn't match anything in the databases."

" So we're looking for someone who would know the Flash and Wally well enough that they could guess their secret identities. Smart enough to engineer a untraceable drug. And crazy enough to make a game of it. Is that what I'm getting?" Green Lantern cut in.

" Pretty much. Question is who is it? Their usual villains don't seem like the type to do this." Superman asked. " True but who else would know them well enough?" Batman said again.

AN(2): Thanks for all of the wonderful support guys! And since no one's guessed it yet I'll give the next hint : this particular villain is one of theirs but isn't seen very often outside the comics.( at least not that I've seen) Have a lovely day everyone!


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